03USMC51
ArboristSite Lurker
Attached is a BTU by species chart, that should sum it up nicely!
Be advised: MBTU = Million British Thermal Units
Be advised: MBTU = Million British Thermal Units
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All Around Best Firewood
- Thread starter Moss Man
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toyfarm
ArboristSite Operative
Hedge (osage orange)
Dead Elm
Dead Elm
Almost every hardwood in Kansas is more worthy of your time.
I understand that, but was looking for some of the cutting, splitting, or burning properties of Gum. I have plenty of locust and ash that is waiting on my splitter, I just wanted to know if the Gum was worth leaving the other stuff in log form for now.
I have heard it is among the most difficult to split. Some genius here in Wichita decided that it would make a good boulevard tree. We often have two feet of gumballs piled at the curb. I've often thought about burning those instead of the tree.
+1 to all those gumballs. I've only thrown them in the fire pit on the patio. They don't light real easy but they will burn after you've got a good coal bed. I've got twins that I pay $0.01 a gumball that they pick up out of the yard. Last week I paid both of them over $3!!
Sounds like a good ploy to get some "alone time" with the missus. I used to pay a nickel for each Ladybug my kids would catch.
Richard Dupp
ArboristSite Member
Locust!
don't know about your species of Gum, but took down a 4ft DBH Gum two seasons ago. what a PITA to split! very heavy when wet, dries light. medium burn times. much easier to split when wet. all sorts of knurls when dry. don't even think about it without a large hydraulic splitter. don't think an inertia splitter Super Split would like this type wood.
wouldn't go out of my way to get any Gum wood. above tree was in my neighbor's yard or I would have passed. it's much better than no wood, but if you've got other nice choices like locust and Ash.... that's what I'd go for.
wouldn't go out of my way to get any Gum wood. above tree was in my neighbor's yard or I would have passed. it's much better than no wood, but if you've got other nice choices like locust and Ash.... that's what I'd go for.
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Moss Man it's about all I burn. Dead stuff that's standing is my usual firewood. Also love locust for January and February. Burned just about every wood there is. Even lived in the Ranger log cabin winter of '69 on Berthoud Pass. Lived in Belmont County, Ohio in 80's and really got spoiled burning shaggy bark hickory, beech, ash, ect. Even black walnut! Love the hickory too.
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coog I heard the Indians had a way of preparing that hedge apple for a pain remedy. This time of year when I lived in Ohio they were all over the roads. Asked many a local what they were good for. Love the wood. It's the best in my opinion.
Hedgerow
HACK
It's good stuff no doubt... Just wish it would ignite quicker like Ash or Hackberry... Have you ever seen a piece of Hedge go "supernova" in the wood stove? Quite a show... Sure wouldn't want to give someone a piece for their fireplace...
:after_boom:
Thanks for the info. The tree has to come down either way...it's dying out and got pretty mangled in a wind storm this summer. I think I'll cut it down and haul it out back split two or three rounds and burn them in the fire pit some weekend to see if I like it enough to finish the rest of the tree or not. If not it gets towed to the burn pile.
zogger
Tree Freak
red oak and ash
I burn everything that crosses my saw, from a little pine and willow on up, but red oak and ash are my favs. Both throw plenty of heat for this climate, just split to size and load the stove accordingly for the heat value you want. Both cut wicked clean, you can get a ton of cuts, tankful after tankful, without dulling the chain. And splitting..I think you'd be hard pressed to process it quicker with a hydraulic when you can whack as fast as you can swing a fiskars and get a nice clean split every time.
I burn everything that crosses my saw, from a little pine and willow on up, but red oak and ash are my favs. Both throw plenty of heat for this climate, just split to size and load the stove accordingly for the heat value you want. Both cut wicked clean, you can get a ton of cuts, tankful after tankful, without dulling the chain. And splitting..I think you'd be hard pressed to process it quicker with a hydraulic when you can whack as fast as you can swing a fiskars and get a nice clean split every time.
zogger
Tree Freak
Do you garden?
If you run a mulch pile, stir in as many of those gum balls as you can. They help keep the pile aerated and they all rot out, you'll get fantastic compost. Turn a liability into an asset!
If you run a mulch pile, stir in as many of those gum balls as you can. They help keep the pile aerated and they all rot out, you'll get fantastic compost. Turn a liability into an asset!
zogger
Tree Freak
Sweet gum
Cuts fine, splits just this side of impossible, burns medium like soft maple. I burn a lot of it, because it sprouts and grows like crazy and I have to keep clearing it, and hardly ever split it, just let it hang out in chunks that will fit into the stove. Small pieces to season, one year, larger chunks you have noodled to size or thick diameter cut stubby, two years. It does burn though, burns fine, you could use it for fall and spring wood and save your better stuff for full winter.
If it is..go grab oak or ash or sweetgum though, don't. If you got it for free or easy pickings and all the pieces you can cut small enough to fit without splitting (which on a mature tree is cords of branch wood small enough), it's perfectly fine, especially if you can use medium maple quality wood. That's been my experience with it. I cut a hugemongous one down a few years ago.I think the second biggest tree I ever dropped....even with a hydraulic it was two bears and a half to split them huge rounds....but..that was most of my wood that year and it worked OK. My stacks are almost always around 1/3rd sweetgum, just because I have to cut tons of saplings. I grab ten decent sticks or so from each little one, right onto the pile as is. You can knock out a lot that way, or bucking up a big one that has been felled, take all but the trunk. What to do with the trunk..err....use it for erosion control! Build bunkers for the kids!
I don't mill but it sure is some twisty wood, might be pretty for that, just don't know.
Cuts fine, splits just this side of impossible, burns medium like soft maple. I burn a lot of it, because it sprouts and grows like crazy and I have to keep clearing it, and hardly ever split it, just let it hang out in chunks that will fit into the stove. Small pieces to season, one year, larger chunks you have noodled to size or thick diameter cut stubby, two years. It does burn though, burns fine, you could use it for fall and spring wood and save your better stuff for full winter.
If it is..go grab oak or ash or sweetgum though, don't. If you got it for free or easy pickings and all the pieces you can cut small enough to fit without splitting (which on a mature tree is cords of branch wood small enough), it's perfectly fine, especially if you can use medium maple quality wood. That's been my experience with it. I cut a hugemongous one down a few years ago.I think the second biggest tree I ever dropped....even with a hydraulic it was two bears and a half to split them huge rounds....but..that was most of my wood that year and it worked OK. My stacks are almost always around 1/3rd sweetgum, just because I have to cut tons of saplings. I grab ten decent sticks or so from each little one, right onto the pile as is. You can knock out a lot that way, or bucking up a big one that has been felled, take all but the trunk. What to do with the trunk..err....use it for erosion control! Build bunkers for the kids!
I don't mill but it sure is some twisty wood, might be pretty for that, just don't know.
wooddog 066
ArboristSite Operative
Hot btu's
My vote goes to locust for the best and hottest the oak!!!!
My vote goes to locust for the best and hottest the oak!!!!
The best if you take a lot of care when loading your stove. Kind of like heating with fireworks.
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